Under the Tutelage of Maito Gai
by DarkQueenDraconite
Summary: Snapshots of precious moments in Team Gai: NejiTen, TenLee.
1. The Youth of Hair

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, Tenten would be the main character.**

_**Drabble 1: The Youth of Hair: Pre-Naruto Series**_

Tenten's hair was drooping. Her neat buns were drooping. Needless to say, this did not make Tenten very happy. At all. And her beloved teammates weren't helping. At all.

They were currently sitting in a teashop, Tenten crammed besides Neji. The latter was staring at the wall, his Byakugan activated—no doubt, there were more interesting things to look at outside than the bland, old-lady covered inside of the teashop.

Lee, on the other hand, was practically bouncing in excitement next to his honorable sensei, the one and only, Maito Gai. "When do we get to go after Tora next, Gai-sensei?" The spandex-covered youth asked zealously. Tenten wanted to kick him. That damned cat had almost made her hair come loose. And landed a couple of scratches to boot, too.

Maito Gai, however, was beaming at Lee with a sort of fatherly pride. "We'll take a break here, first, Lee. Then we shall pursue Tora with all the fiery youth in our hearts!"

Tenten decided to stop listening. Conversations between Lee and Gai were always too happy. Now, Tenten was not an unhappy person. But there was only so much youth she could take. Groaning, she flopped down, preparing to nap until the next dreaded Tora-hunting excursion.

That was, until Lee suddenly kicked her under the seat.

"What the—!" Tenten's head jerked up, to find a Lee with two bright spots on his cheeks, staring at _her._

"What the hell, Lee?" She screamed at him, nice nap totally forgotten. Gai-sensei shook his head disapprovingly. "Now, Tenten…" he said soothingly. "We must fill the air with youth!" Lee, uncharacteristically not agreeing with his sensei for once, kept staring at her with that befuddled expression.

"Lee?" Tenten asked uncertainly. Was there something on her face? Suddenly, he stood up.

And that was when he stepped out of the booth, strode up the aisle to where she sat, and started speaking. "I love you! Your hair burns of youth! Will you go out with me? I'll protect you forever!" Tenten stared at him, slack-jawed. Had his mouth not been opening and closing, she would've never believed these words were coming from _him._

He looked at her expectantly, waiting for an answer. But wait, why were his eyes to the side? People were supposed to make proclamations while looking their target straight in the eye, right?

"Um…Lee…" Tenten started, noticing that half the shop was staring at them. How would she put him down? "I—"

"HELL NO!"

Tenten jerked, startled. That was when she noticed the pink-haired girl, who looked to be about eleven years old, in the booth behind them. The girl's face was as pink as her hair, and she was scooting away from Lee as far as she could. And that was when Tenten realized that Lee was staring at that pink-haired girl, looking crushed.

"_Oh…" _Tenten thought. She could not think of anything else. She ought to be relieved, right? Why had her mind suddenly blanked?

Behind her, Neji made a disparaging snort, no doubt scorning her failed rejection plan.

"YOU!" She cried, jabbing a finger at him. He smirked. And that was when Tenten, outraged, overbalanced, falling into his lap. And that was when Lee decided to steal Gai's sake and drink.

Needless to say, mayhem issued.

Dripping wet, exhausted, and totally sober, Team Gai had a lot to clean up. And there was still Tora to be found. As Tenten and Neji stared at the mess and Lee looked ashamed, trying to sneak away to do laps, they all heard a voice from one of old ladies filing out the shop—

"My, my, so much young love nowadays…"

Surprisingly, the only thing Tenten could think of was—_Lee's not in love with her! _Behind Tenten, she could swear she heard a disparaging snort.

_**It was very subtle LeeTen, if you couldn't figure out the pairing. Review!  
**_


	2. Kunoichi Power

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, Tenten would be the main character.**

_**Drabble 2: Female Dominance**_

_**Setting: Right before Naruto Series Starts**_

"Yatta! I did it! Whoo!" Lee pranced around like an excited pony, looking as if he hadn't just nearly killed himself doing the Primary Lotus. "YOSH!"

Gai-sensei, who had been trying to get the attention of Lee for nearly five minutes now, was looking as if he was going to explode any minute now. Judging by the vein on his forehead, of course.

Tenten and Neji shared exasperated looks. Good Kami, just how much stamina did their green teammate have? They couldn't even rouse themselves to cheer when Gai delivered a mighty punch to Lee's face.

"Lee!"

"Hai, Gai-sensei! I'm sorry!"

Gai stared at his student for a little more, then broke out into a smile.

"I am glad you are able to do it when Neji and Tenten cannot!" Gai boomed in his most youthful voice.

"Ugh…let's take our leave already…" Tenten whispered to Neji, who looked to be a bit sick. Tenten couldn't tell if this was because of the youthfest of Gai and Lee that was unfolding before them or the impossible training which Lee somehow managed to master.

"Definitely." Neji agreed.

Tenten, who relished the fact that cold, stoic, Neji had taken her side without a single arrogant look for once, quickly grabbed Neji's forearm and took off with him. The sunset which had magically appeared behind Lee and Gai was starting to make her feel sick.

"Huh?" Lee looked around, to find two empty spots where his teammates should be. "Gai-sensei, Neji and Tenten are gone."

"Oh, I'm sure they just went to get some water or something," Gai-sensei reassured him.

"Okay…" Lee said, looking unconvinced for once. He felt slightly down that his two teammates hadn't stayed for his success.

_**4 hours later**_

"Wow, Lee!" Tenten was gushing. "This is a really nice place!" She, Lee, and Neji were standing at a candlelit romantic dinner place. She was still dressed in her kunoichi garb, though she had showered. She hadn't expected Lee to treat them at such a nice restaurant, or she would've changed into something more formal.

Lee beamed. "Thank you, Tenten!" He said proudly. "I will exhaust all of my savings for our food tonight in celebration for mastering the Primary Lotus, but if I do not do this for my teammates, then I am an un-youthful and terrible person!"

"Umm…." Tenten said, not sure how to respond. "Do you want me to pay for my own food, then?"

Lee looked horrified. "No! Of course not! It is you I will definitely treat, Tenten!"

Neji suddenly looked affronted. "And me, Lee?"

Lee seemed to notice him at last second. "Oh, and you too, Neji-kun!"

"Since when have I become inferior to Tenten?" Neji asked coldly.

_He's in a really, really, bad mood. _Tenten thought, shocked.

Lee frowned. "I was not implying that, Neji-kun. It is because Tenten is a lady."

Tenten opened her mouth to protest, but Neji beat her to the chase. "No, it is all in your actions, Lee. From the way you talk, and from the way you walk, you are so full of arrogance and pride that it disgusts me."

Lee and Tenten stared at their teammate with identical shocked looks.

"You know you are fated to be inferior." Neji stated. "You cannot do ninjutsu, or genjutsu. Ninjutsu is what a ninja is made of. Even if you matter something like the Primary Lotus, you will still never be as good as a true shinobi."

_Geez…_ Was all Tenten could think. Lee, however, was turning livid.

"Well, if you think that, Neji Hyuuga, then you are wrong! A shinobi is not based on ninjutsu alone! You are the one who is arrogant, and if you want to fight, I am more than—"

"ENOUGH!" Tenten roared. The whole restaurant had gone silent by now. "YOU, NEJI!" Neji cowered under her finger. Since when did Tenten develop a temper?

"Enough with your words! We all are teammates, and we all should encourage each other! I know you are jealous—yes, jealous, Neji (for Neji had begun to snort in disbelief) that Lee can do what you cannot! But you can do many things that Lee can't! It's not right to crush other peoples' dreams like that, and I don't care if you're a Hyuuga or not!"

Neji simply stared at her. No one, no one talked to _Neji Hyuuga _like that. But, Tenten looked very, very mad at the moment and he thought it not advisable to retort back that he was simply stating the facts because it was _fated_, because she might impale him with a shuriken in the middle of a restaurant. So he just grumbled and looked the other way, silently fuming. That was the first time _anyone _had spoken to him like that, and had anyone else done it, he would have Gentle Fisted them right then and there. But with Tenten…he couldn't. Neji Hyuuga sighed, and let himself be dragged over to a table by the girl. Really, she had too much power over him.

Tenten beckoned Lee over too, and he stared at her with a kind of admiration. And their dinner continued in relative peace.

That was, until…

Lee bolted upright, staring at…_oh Kami. It's that pink-haired girl. AGAIN! _Tenten mentally screamed.

He stood up, nearly knocking Tenten's plate over, and was about to stride toward the girl, until…

THWACK! Lee reeled backwards, cheek stinging from Tenten's slap.

"You. Will. Not. Embarrass. Us. Again." Tenten hissed at him, this time actually brandishing a shuriken.

Lee shrank back, looking very, very, frightened.

"You can do whatever you like in private, but not somewhere like this!" Tenten snarled.

Lee gulped.

Neji looked satisfied.

That moment would have been comedic, until…

Clap, clap. Tenten reeled around, mortified. That was the second time she had embarrassed herself in this restaurant! People were making fun of her!

Then, the clapping turned to a full-blown cheering as other people joined in, all stamping their feet in approval of Tenten.

In the crowd, someone shouted—

"You show them, girl!"

And Tenten couldn't have felt happier.

_**That was a long drabble. LeeXTentenXNeji triangle! Please review, and make this author happy. **_


	3. Team Squirrel

**Disclaimer: Team Gai would've been the "Team Kakashi" in my world.**

_**Drabble 3: Team Squirrel**_

_**Setting: Pre-Chuunin Exam**_

_**A/N: Sorry about the late update! Motivation strikes at the strangest times…and thank you to my wonderful reviewers, Dellanotte, you know. that one girl., and Darth-Taisha!**_

"So, my most exuberant team, I have deemed you ready to perform in the Chuunin Exam!" Maito Gai was towering over them with a gleaming smile of excitement on his face.

Tenten, for once, wasn't wincing from the noise. She smiled at her sensei, proud that she had come this far—her sensei had deemed her good enough to compete with other, older teams, and she wanted to prove her worth as a kunoichi now.

Now, five days later, she sat cross-legged, polishing each and every of her kunai diligently as she watched Lee stretch and Neji meditate. Gai-sensei, she thought, was a truly admirable sensei. He had transformed Lee to what he was today, and she couldn't help but admire the spandex-clad boy before her. Such determination…she shook her head. It wasn't because he was a boy—no, it was because that spirit only appeared in a few people.

She was quite proud of herself too—the timing of her barrage of silver steel of her Twin Rising Dragons took a lot of work, and she had done a lot of speed training with Lee and Gai-sensei before she was able to move through the air, hurtling her weapons.

She remembered Gai-sensei getting a nick on his elbow—just a slight one—as she did her ultimate attack one day after working with Lee and Neji in cornering him, and she couldn't have felt happier. She was sure that Gai-sensei meant it when he hugged and congratulated her, and she felt that perhaps, she would be much better than all the other kunoichi vying for Chuunin.

And of course, Neji still was the genius and he was constantly showing off his Hyuuga powers, such as his new imperfect Kaiten.

She grinned at Neji, who merely raised an eyebrow, and then at Lee, who grinned back and pumped his fist in his air.

"Yes! We are on our next step to the nirvana of the ninja!" The boy said passionately. "We should have a team meeting discussing all our plans, so Gai-sensei's training shall not go to waste!"

Neji rolled his eyes. "Isn't that the reason we're meeting here?"

Lee scowled at him. "Yes, Neji, but there are certain delicate issues we must discuss!"

Neji sighed. "Please don't tell me its something about our name or mascot."

Lee looked vastly uncomfortable.

Tenten decided to butt in. "Okay, guys, let's just hurry up!" She said, grinning at her teammates. Surely they couldn't start bickering again?

"Right you are, Tenten!" Lee said. "I have thought about this Chuunin Exam quite thoroughly, and from what I've learned, Gai-sensei has certain enemies in the other nations, so we should devise a code name for ourselves!

"Are you sure this isn't because you just want to make another team name for us?" Neji asked wryly.

Lee looked affronted. "That is only partly the reason, Neji! Gai-sensei told me himself that his number of enemies is much more than any other Jounin of Konoha, excluding his greatest rival, Kakashi, of course!"

"So…you mean you want a team name that won't give us away to other teams?"

"Right, Tenten!" Lee yelled. "And I've decided to dedicate our code name to you, our strong, youthful, kunoichi!"

Tenten rolled her eyes at the boy's antics, but smiled in anticipation all the same. "So, what is it?"

Lee paused dramatically. "From the start of the Chuunin Exam, we shall be known as…Team Squirrel!"

Tenten was debating whether to impale him or have Neji Gentle Fist him, but Lee seemed to pick up on her facial expression a few seconds after he spoke.

"Tenten, the squirrel is the epitome of youth!" He cried passionately. "This is the greatest honor!"

"Pray tell, do I look like a squirrel to you?" Tenten said in a deadly voice.

"Only slightly!"

Tenten decided to impale him.

Lee dodged out of the way nimbly and crashed into Neji, who spluttered and pushed him off with a sharp chakra blast.

"Ouch!" Lee rubbed the back of his arm. "Tenten, I mean, of course, squirrels fly nimbly from branch to branch, and I think the way you leap off the ground and twirl through the air firing your weapons is just like them!"

"Lee…" Tenten sighed. "Those are flying squirrels."

"Perhaps, but they represent your grace perfectly, Tenten!"

"Lee…" Tenten couldn't bring herself to be mad at him any further. She was touched and flattered, of course, by his compliments, but, really, squirrels?

He sat up, smiling at her. "So now, can we have that name?"

"I guess…" she said, looking exasperatedly at Neji, who simply dipped his head, meaning "go with it".

"YOSH! Now we truly are youthful!" Lee cried.

Tenten and Neji shared looks, but she could tell he wasn't really annoyed at Lee. He was looking at Lee with a look of acceptance…and Tenten's heart warmed as she realized that Neji had finally accepted Lee.

"Well, boys, shall we go?"

"Yes!" Lee saluted, and the three of them leapt in opposite directions to work flawlessly as a team into the trees.

Seconds later, Lee was executing his 'Konoha Senpuu' on a dummy's head, and Neji was practicing his Kaiten, and Tenten was nowhere to be seen, but weapons from a mace to small senbon were sticking out of the dummies.

For now, Team Gai was perfectly happy. All too soon, their team would fall apart again, as Tenten would fall from the sky from her own cockiness, Lee's determination be crushed, and Neji have to change himself the most.

But for now, they were a team.

_**More LeeTen…don't worry, NejiTen fans! There will be NejiTen later.**_

_**Criticize, praise, or encouragement; please leave a thought!**_


End file.
